Rearranging

Our house is an ongoing project of shuffling stuff. We switch rooms often, and try to find a way to make the space that we have work for us. We could still use a few more rooms though…

Last weekend we decided to move the office out of the foyer, and to move the boys art desk that was in the dining room in to the foyer. It was a good afternoon project, and so far we are really happy with the results. Now though we want to repaint the dining room, but that is a whole other project.

Here’s what got switched around this time.

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My desk used to be under the stairway.

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Now it is back in the dining room. I like it in the dining room, the room is big and airy.

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The dining room was looking a little cluttered with the addition of two desks and a big table, so we moved the buffet out of the room. It’s now where my desk was, under the stairs.

James used to have a large table as his desk in the foyer, he switched it for the smaller mission style desk that the boys were using as an art desk.

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The large table stayed in the foyer, and the boys were really happy to get it. The love their new art desk.

Aug 15

The New Routine

Well this week is the week where the Summer ends and the back to school routine begins. How I enjoyed our slacker Summer, and I’m bummed to report that we already have something on the calendar for every single day this week…

I’ve started waking up earlier, and waking up the kids up earlier too. Today we had a mock school morning, and we were all up, dressed, and ready go get out of the house by 7:30 a.m. We loaded up in the van and timed our school routes, we then hit up the grocery store to get it out of the way early.

The store was pretty vacant at 7:30 a.m., and we got the shopping done super fast.

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Thade wanted to go to the library to get a few more books, and Dylan and Agnes were exhausted by 9:30 a.m. Even though there are only two days of school this week, I think it is going to be a tough week on the kiddos. I’m already missing those mornings where I got to sleep in till 7:00 a.m.

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I hope the kiddos crash out early tonight, I’m tired already.

We’ll be up early again tomorrow to practice for one more school day. Maybe tomorrow will go a bit smoother, and just maybe the kiddos won’t be as grumpy.

So do you have any tips to share that help your kiddos get back into the school routine?

Aug 9

Where Did All The Cool Air Go

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Usually it is the cat that picks a spot right in front of one of the vents, on the cool hardwood floor. He naps there all day, and robs an entire room of cool air. The cat now has competition for the sweet air-conditioning.

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Oh yeah it’s Agnes!

She has discovered her love of the air-conditioning. Here she removed the draft guard (should be in place so the entire room can have cool air) she is using the vent to fluff her pretty hair.

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Here she is parked right in front the vent, watching Yo Gabba Gabba!, and yes robbing the entire living room of that super sweet cool air.

Last but not least…

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The air-conditioning belongs to Agnes! No one will be cool this Summer, but she is happy.

Aug 9

Enrollment Day

I’ll just put this out there, this is one of the days that I dread the most… It is always hot, it always takes way too long, and my kiddos are always really grumpy at the end of it, and honestly so am I…

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I had the added grumpiness factor that I had already received several emails about fundraisers, and read too many articles about taxes going up, and mills going up, so yeah, I went to enrollment already not a happy camper.

There we were on a very hot day in August, and I had all 3 kiddos in tow. I decided that this year we were going to speed through enrollment. This is my third year at it, so I know which tables to skip, and I know how to answer questions quickly… I got the paperwork done, skipped the “fundraiser table” and the sports, headed straight for the buses, told them we didn’t qualify, they still checked, and yep we still don’t qualify. One more table to breeze by, and then it was on to the Attendance Center tables.

So Thade didn’t get the teacher that I had hoped for, he didn’t get in a class with his best buddy, they aren’t improving pick-up at school either, they did tell me a total, and I wrote the check and we were out of there.

I did it in 30 minutes, a new record. I was kinda in a bad mood, so I decided to take the kiddos out for a bit.

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Their favorite park was only a few blocks away.

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Those little faces always make me cheerier.

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We were in luck too, we had the park all to ourselves.

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Agnes could run around like a crazy-woman.

My hubby was extra sweet too and picked us up lunch since he knew I was pretty grumpy about the whole enrollment thing, he is awesome like that. Enrollment was a bummer, but getting to spend a super-rad morning with the kiddos is always awesome.

Jul 25

New Hair-Cuts

My boys were looking a bit messy, with their shaggy little mop-tops, so I declared it was time for a hair-cut.

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I give the boys at home hair-cuts. I’ve been cutting Thade’s hair for about 6 years now, and Dylan doesn’t mind either. This time I decided to try something a little different, so I gave the boys faux-hawks. I think they look super-cute!

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